


A Marriage of Rebellion

by Zoa



Series: A Marriage of Rebellion [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Angst and Romance, Arranged Marriage, Eventual Happy Ending, F/M, Marriage, Romance, Royal Wedding, brief strangulation by sheev palpatine, implications of past abuse, mentions of future pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:47:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27047449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zoa/pseuds/Zoa
Summary: This fic is forpg-13reylo(impossiblefangirl0632) who was the winner of my first tumblr fic give away! She gave me an AMAZING prompt and I went way over my self-imposed word limit. I seriously had a lot of fun with this!The prompt: Historical Arranged Marriage- Rey is a princess and must choose a prince to marry. Solely (at first) to spite her grandfather, she chooses the grandson of his old rival, Prince Ben Solo.I hope you love it!❤️
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: A Marriage of Rebellion [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2099265
Comments: 47
Kudos: 220





	A Marriage of Rebellion

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Impossiblefangirl0632](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Impossiblefangirl0632/gifts).



Rey’s footsteps echoed down the dark halls of her grandfather’s fortress as she made her way to his viewing rooms. Her forest green dress, woven by the finest of seamstresses and embedded with golden thread, reflected off the polished granite floors. Guards in scarlet armor opened the doors for her and she entered a minuscule yet still intimidating version of the fortress’ throne room.

Her grandfather sat upon a large, oaken chair, no match for his grand stone throne, but still impressive. Rey stopped a few feet from him and bowed.

“You summoned me, your majesty?” She couldn’t help speaking with a hint of sarcasm.

Sheev Palpatine, ruler of a massive Empire that spanned two continents, templed his fingers and looked upon his granddaughter with a serious air.

“It is time for you to marry, granddaughter.”

Rey straightened so quickly she dizzied. “What?”

“You are twenty, of age. It is time.”

“I do not wish to marry, grandfather,” Rey answered, heart hammering away in her chest. She had feared this day, the day she would be married off to some imbecile (or worse) and forced to bring children into a world that would use them and abuse them for political gain.

Her grandfather narrowed his eyes at her. His dark robes were lined with ermine, denoting his royal status, but creating the odd effect of making his head look like it was floating. “It is your duty. My son is gone. _You_ must produce an heir.” His gaze softened. “You may choose any one of the princes in my Empire.”

“Perhaps,” Rey said slowly, carefully controlling her emotions, “if you made it so that _female_ descendants could inherit, the situation would not be so dire. For then, when you expired, I would take the throne.” Rey met her grandfather’s hard expression with one of her own.

Sheev sighed as if he were actually sympathetic to her plight. “Unfortunately, dear girl, that is an ancient law even I cannot touch.”

Her self-restraint broke and she burst. “Then your Empire will die with you!”

Faster than a man his age had a right to move, Sheev rose and stretched out a gnarled hand to grasp Rey about the neck. He gave the slightest squeeze and she stiffened. His face was still as the ocean before a gale. But in his voice, quiet as it was, Rey heard the storm.

“You will abide by our laws, my dear, or I will invoke _my_ right to cut out that venomous tongue of yours.”

This was not the first time she had seen him so angry and nor the first time he had threatened her. Rey knew better than to fight back. There were better ways to resist.

  
“I apologize, my king.” She forced the words out, his hand just tight enough to restrict her voice. “I will choose a prince to marry.”

His fingers relaxed and Sheev returned to his throne. Rey struggled not to take a deep breath as air returned to her lungs. She would not give him the satisfaction of seeing any weakness.

“Excellent,” he said. “You will have one week to make your choice and wed. If you do not marry within that time, I will choose for you.”

“Yes, grandfather.” Rey bowed again but her mind was already turning with ways to undermine the king.

He might have won this battle, but he would not win the war.

****

There were fifty princes in her grandfather’s Empire, sons of his kings, the glorified governors of Sheev’s provinces. And all were to be housed in Sheev’s massive fortress in Coruscant, each intent on being the one chosen by the Emperor’s granddaughter, each hungering for power and prestige.

Nearly all of them were terrible.

But before the princes arrived and she was subjected to the torture of a week of wooing by so many horrible men, she knew who she would marry.

The Prince of Alderaan.

Alderaan was a small, ancient kingdom that had long been in her grandfather’s clutches, having been taken in a great conflict that had solidified her grandfather’s power and ended a brave rebellion. Alderaan’s prince, Benjamin Solo, was the son of Bail Organa’s daughter and heir to the Alderaanian throne, but he was also, by a strange turn of events, the grandson of her grandfather’s greatest rival, Anakin Skywalker.

That being the case, she was surprised the Emperor had included him on the invitation list. When she asked the royal steward, he informed her that it would be a diplomatic incident if the Emperor did not. Alderaan had suffered greatly in the war and garnered much support because of it. Slighting them now would only serve to weaken the Emperor’s already tenuous ties in that part of the world.

During their conversation, the steward made it clear the Emperor would be less than pleased if Rey even considered the Alderaanian prince. Rey assured the man she wouldn’t dream of disappointing the Emperor in such a way.

“I was only curious as to the prince’s presence here,” she explained with a disarming smile.

But of course, her mind was made up.

Marrying Alderaan’s prince and creating a new line with Skywalker blood would vex her grandfather to no end; it would eat at him like a stomach full of worms that his throne would eventually seat Anakin Skywalker’s progeny. 

If Sheev was to force Rey to wed, she would ensure he would regret it the rest of his miserable life.

But her grandfather could not know of her choice before the final day. If he did, he would put an end to it, possibly by executing Solo, assuredly by sending him away. That wouldn’t do. Rey would have to pretend to be interested in another before the seventh day, when her decision would be final and unchangeable according to the ancient laws of the land.

Another problem was assuring that the prince himself would be amiable to her proposal. The decision needed to be made of his free will; she would not make another do what her grandfather was forcing her to do.

She would not confine another to a lifetime of unhappiness.

****

On the first day, Rey sat at her grandfather’s side in the imposing, cathedral of a throne room as the princes presented themselves to the Emperor and the Princess. She listened carefully as each prince’s name was read, eager and anxious to hear Prince Benjamin’s name called. His approach was one she would always remember. He was the tallest and the broadest. His stride was long but his bow shallow where the others had nearly bent themselves to the floor. Raven hair fell to his shoulders and framed a pale face dotted with dark marks. Deep brown, seemingly infinite, eyes were set atop full lips and a striking nose. A long scar shot down one side of his face but did not greatly affect its unique beauty.

None of the others were like him.

When those beautiful eyes met hers, Rey was transfixed. But his face hardened and he turned away. Despite understanding why - her grandfather had caused much pain to the prince’s family - the look was a prick to her heart and a crack in her plan.

He hated her. Would he agree to her scheme? Would he agree to wed her?

Rey was not certain.

****

Prince Armitage Hux of Arkanis droned on and on, matching the tone of his horse’s hoofbeats. The prince had invited her for a ride across the fortress’ vast grounds, which was normally one of Rey’s favorite things to do, but Hux was quickly making the liberating activity tedious. The man was a pale, unpleasant fellow who looked on the verge of sneezing all the time. As a possible husband, he was absolutely out of the question. His father, Brendol, was an old ally of Sheev’s. Her grandfather would be too pleased if she chose him.

Besides all of that, Hux was exceedingly boring. But he was also easily entertained by his own conversation so Rey was able to ignore him in favor of thinking of a new solution to her predicament should Solo refuse.

“…of course our sons will be raised here.”

As if struck by lightning, Rey snapped to attention. “Prince Armitage, do you enjoy galloping? I do love to gallop!” Before he could answer Rey urged her horse on, digging her heel into its flank until the creature was flying across the fields behind the fortress, away from Hux and the scarlet guards who were escorting them.

The wind whipped her hair out of its bounds and lifted the sea-blue silks of her dress about her. For a few blessed minutes there was only the roar of the air and the pounding of hooves in her ears and she was alone, surrounded by tall, green and gold grass.

She was free.

It could not last.

A second set of hooves followed behind her, closer and closer. Hux. Rey could not bear to subject herself to that horrid man again and his talk of the future.

Her future.

Instead of slowing, Rey steered her horse toward the edge of the field. Beyond was the forest in which her grandfather often hunted. It was dense and dark, the perfect place to disappear and hide.

Rey looked upon that forest as a lifeline.

She breached the shadows but didn’t stop until she was well beneath the canopy of immense trees. Only when she lost sight of the sun and field did she bring her bay mare to a halt. The only sound now were the chirps of birds and soft sigh of a breeze through the leaves high above her. Rey heaved a breath and closed her eyes. She slid off her side-saddle to allow her animal to rest and came around to hold the poor thing’s head as it caught its breath.

“I’m sorry,” Rey whispered, guilty for making the poor mare run so fast. “But I needed to escape.”

The tear that escaped down her cheek was not expected and broke the dam she had unconsciously built. Rey pressed her forehead to her horse’s nose and cried. Not since her parents death had she spilt such heavy tears. But here, in the quiet and loneliness of the forest, she allowed herself to feel everything. The grief, the anger, the hopelessness. All of it swept over her in an overwhelming wave and drowned her. Rey threw her arms around her mare’s neck and sobbed.

Twigs snapping and the low whinny of another horse froze Rey in place. Hux had found her somehow. Or perhaps it was one of the other princes.Either way, she could hide no longer. Rey raised her head and wiped away the tears with the back of her hand. She must look a terrible mess but she didn’t care. If her mournful appearance scared her suitors away then all the better.

But when she turned to address the intruder, she found it was not who she expected.

It was the Prince of Alderaan.

Rey felt that she should be afraid but she wasn’t. She watched him approach - leading his dark charger on foot - with curiosity. His dark clothes and the cape that hung from his shoulders were made of the finest of materials, interwoven with gold thread, a symbol of his province’s success. The reason why her grandfather coveted Alderaan so much: its wealth. The prince came to a stop a few feet away, bearing an intimidating glare.

For a moment no word was spoken and Rey realized he was surveying her as well. She wondered what he thought of her now in her distress, with her windblown hair and eyes red from tears. Yet she quickly pushed those thoughts aside. Here was her chance to ask him to marry her and strike a mortal blow to her grandfather. If he would listen.

“Prince Benjamin, isn’t it?”

He seemed surprised. “Yes, your majesty. Forgive me, I didn’t think you remembered me.”

“I remember you. You were the only one who did not prostrate himself before my grandfather.” Rey saw a flicker of anxiety cross his face, quickly replaced with defiance. “Don’t be concerned. My grandfather was too busy basking in the others’ praise to be concerned with one mild act of disrespect. Throw any good word at him and he will purr like a cat. A cat that will also kill you for the wrong word,” she muttered, the memory of one poor lord who lost his head at dinner a few months before coming to mind.

The prince’s eyes narrowed. “You surprise me again, your highness.”

Rey sighed and pressed her forehead to her horse’s cheek. The smell of its sweat and the leather of the bridle was comforting. “I do not love my grandfather, Prince Benjamin. I know what he is, what he’s done, and I hate him for it.”

“You shouldn’t say such things. I hear it’s death for treason.”

“Indeed it is. But I’m too valuable for him to kill.” Again she turned to face the prince and braced herself for what she was about to say next. “My grandfather is old, he’s had an unnaturally long life but he knows his luck will run out. With my father dead, he has no male heirs to bear his crown. Besides tradition, the reason he wants me to marry now is so that he can be assured within his lifetime the line will be carried on. He’s using me, as he always has, for his own gain.” Her eyes swam with more tears but she blinked them away and enfolded herself in fury to continue. “I have a small freedom given to me by the law which allows me to choose the man who will be my husband from among the princes. I have been granted this one chance to rebel.”

When she paused he bore a deep scowl. “Why are you telling me this?”

Rey tried to swallow but her throat and mouth were bone dry. “I want that man to be you.”

The scowl was replaced with pure shock. “Me? Why?”

“Your grandfather was mine’s greatest rival,” Rey explained. “Our marriage would be the ultimate wound. It would eat away at what’s left of his life and he will be buried with the knowledge that a Skywalker will take his throne.”

“I see.”

The prince’s eyes dropped to the forest floor, a sign of thought, she assumed. After a moment to give him time to consider she prompted him, anxious.

“What is your answer, sir? You may refuse, of course, but I must know.”

Yet, again, instead of answering he said something surprising. “You were upset when I arrived.”

His question was implicit but Rey was not sure if she wanted to answer why she had been upset. “I thought I was alone.”

“Do you often cry when you’re alone?” He raised his gaze again to capture hers. She couldn’t look away. There was something in his eyes, something she hadn’t seen before when someone looked at her. As if he cared.

Rey surprised herself by replying. “I was… I was frustrated.”

And frightened.

“By what?”

Rey was speaking before sparing a single thought as to why. “My grandfather thinks I will pick a man like Armitage Hux, one he approves of, one who will raise my children to think and act and be like _him_ but I won’t.” Her voice carried through the forest, louder than she meant. “I won’t,” she repeated in a whisper and viciously swiped at an escaped tear.

When next she looked at the prince, he was standing before her, having taken the yard between them in seconds. He raised his hand and Rey involuntarily flinched. Another emotion flickered across his face - anger - and she shrank back. His face clouded and he dropped his hand immediately, fisting it tight at his side. It was then Rey realized his anger was not directed at her.

“I think your plan is an excellent one,” he said abruptly.

“So you will… you agree to marry me?” Rey watched him carefully but she saw no sign of dishonesty. He nodded.

“I do. If our marriage is a way destroy Sheev Palpatine I will gladly do it.”

His answer elicited more relief than Rey expected to feel. “Thank you.”

Sounds Rey recognized as Hux and the guards calling and searching for her reached them through the eaves of the forest. It would not be wise for the prince to be caught with her now. Rey turned to him.

“I’m going to let Hux think he’s the man I’ve chosen. I cannot risk my grandfather learning it’s really you before the time is right.”

A slight smile raised the prince’s mouth and Rey thought she’d like to see a fuller one grace those lips. “I can’t wait to see the look on the old goat’s face when you say my name. I hope to remember it forever.”

This one was mischief, a voice in the back of her head warned, but Rey was too charmed to care. The searching calls of Hux and the guards grew louder and Rey pushed at the prince’s chest.

“You should go. I… I am truly grateful, Prince Benjamin.”

Much to her surprise, the prince took one of her hands and brought it to his lips. An almost unbearable heat suffused her cheeks in a blush when he laid a gentle kiss to her knuckles.

“Since we’re now betrothed, I think you can call me Ben, your highness.”

A silly fluttering went through Rey’s stomach, intensifying with the look he gave her as she tried his preferred name. “Thank you, Ben.”

Moments later he was gone and Rey was alone again. Except, for some reason she could not explain, she did not _feel_ alone.

****

Secure in Prince Benjamin’s promise, Rey was more easily able to withstand Hux’s tediousness and the others’ incessant flirting and ridiculous attempts - including dueling - to win her hand. She could not risk seeing Ben alone again, for though he was safe there were still spies among her grandfather’s staff who would follow and report Rey should she do anything suspicious. However, her loyal servants were free to roam as they pleased and carried letters to and from the prince.

It was through those letters Rey grew to understand him. It was through those letters she was more herself than she had ever been with another person. Every evening of idle chit-chat with Hux or one of the others was spent eagerly awaiting the time she would return to her rooms to a new note from her secret betrothed. Often she wondered if he felt the same and worked up the bravery to write him and ask one afternoon when she broke from the festivities to change for dinner. His answering ‘yes’ was returned quickly and warmed her heart. The expression he passed her at dinner served to warm the rest of her.

The seventh day, the day Rey would announce her choice and wed him, she woke with the dawn. She was to make her decision in the morning and the wedding was to be held that evening; it was what her grandfather wanted and for the first time Rey was in agreement with him. The less time Sheev had to intervene, the better.

When the time came the throne room filled to the brim with members of the court and Rey’s suitors. Rey couldn’t help but be a little proud of herself for tricking her grandfather (and Hux) so spectacularly. They were both fully convinced Hux was her choice and already gloating about it.

The Ministers of the land were there to oversee the proceedings and make sure that all went according to tradition. They were the only counterweight to Sheev’s possible attempt to change the rules.

It was time.

Rey stood from her small throne beside her grandfather’s and approached the edge of the dais upon which they sat. Her eyes searched the crowd until she found Ben, near the front, waiting for his cue to step forward. Hux was near, a sickening expression of satisfaction on his face. Oh, she could not wait to see it wiped off.

“As our Emperor’s only granddaughter and only grandchild, it is my duty to marry and carry on the line with a prince of the land.” Rey spoke clearly, eyes traveling to the Ministers. “By ancient law, the name I speak now is the man I will marry. No one, not even the Emperor himself, can change that. This is my royal privilege.” The Ministers nodded and Rey steadied herself with a slow breath. Her eyes flew back to Ben. “I choose the Prince of Alderaan, Benjamin Organa Solo, heir to Bail Organa and Anakin Skywalker.”

Murmurs flowed through the crowd, everyone shocked - and some drama-loving members delighted - at the choice.

_“What?”_

It was Hux, mouth now agape like a fish, who had cried out. Rey watched Ben brush past him - perhaps shoving at the other prince a little with his shoulder - as he made his way to the dais. She didn’t dare look at her grandfather yet, though she could feel his eyes burning into the back of her neck.

But all thoughts of Sheev passed out of her head as Ben reached the dais and knelt before her. Rey extended her hand and he took it, pressing his forehead to her knuckles.

“Do you except my hand, Prince Benjamin?” she asked, her voice and hand now shaking, a fear that he would refuse rising and knotting her stomach.

“Yes,” he said, more strongly than she expected. His fingers squeezed her hand in a gentle show of reassurance. “I do.”

****

Sheev was livid. Upon the dismissal of the guests until the wedding ceremony, he ordered Rey and the Ministers to the small viewing room and demanded recourse.

The Ministers gave him none. This was Rey’s right according to the law. Unless Sheev wanted to break with an ancient tradition and cause perhaps an unfixable political situation - as Alderaan was loved by many in the Empire and vital to its existence - there was nothing he could do.

Rey had won.

****

The ceremony was held in the throne room. Ben wore a deep blue, velvet tunic and Rey was in the white silks her mother wore at her own wedding. He didn’t look anywhere else but at her and Rey could not look away from him. It was so strange, the affect he had on her, but Rey wasn’t afraid of it. For some equally unknown reason, she trusted him.

In Coruscant tradition, their hands were bound together with red string, signifying their eternal connection. They took the sacred vows and Ben kissed her chastely. He lingered half a moment longer than he should have and retreated sooner than Rey wished.

After that was the feast. Everyone in court enjoyed themselves immensely; except of course for Sheev, who glowered at the bride and groom throughout the event. Rey was a bundle of nerves, afraid despite the Ministers' assurances her grandfather would try something terrible. In the midst of dinner, apparently noticing her state, Ben took her hand beneath their table and did not let go almost the entire night. Rey’s was surprised but grateful and comforted.

Relief came when the bride and groom were finally allowed to go to the bridal chambers, a tower on the north side of the fortress far away from the festivities which would go on for days. Rey was escorted to the adjoining dressing room to prepare for her wedding night. Her ladies tittered about and teased her as they loosened and brushed her hair and arranged her nightgown and robe, richly brocaded with pink roses, just so. Rey was glad when they were gone. She hadn’t decided yet what to do about this night and their nonsense wasn’t helping.

When she emerged from the other room, her new husband was standing by a window that overlooked the city beyond the fortress, bright and alive with the celebration of the royal wedding. He looked away from the window at her entrance. Rey saw he had changed as well, from his rich, velvet tunic to a simple linen one that hung loose over his broad frame. Rey imagined she would be lost in it and the thought of wearing his clothes brought a blush to her face she was glad could not be seen in the candlelight.

For a long moment - or maybe a minute - they stared at each other without a word.

“They’re going to be doing that all night, aren’t they,” he said finally with a nod to the window. “Celebrating.”

Rey moved to join him so she could see, walking deliberately and quickly past the giant four-poster bed that was like a sore on her mind. She looked out on the city, at all the dancing lights, and the faint music from a dozen different places.

“Yes. I suppose they are.” Rey glanced up at him; part of his face was in shadow, but the scarred side was cast in flickering light from a nearby candle. To anyone else he might have looked frightening. But not to her. Urged to say something - anything - Rey opened her mouth to thank him again but he spoke before she could.

“I need you to know I don’t expect anything tonight.” His eyes darted in her direction and back to the window. Rey’s mouth snapped closed and another blush heated her cheeks. “I understand our responsibility and your intentions with our marriage, but that doesn’t have to start now. Or ever.” Ben fully faced her, his expression serious and sincere. “Rest assured I won’t demand anything of you. You’re free with me. You’re safe.”

Warmth bloomed in Rey’s chest and she smiled. “You’re a good man, Ben Solo, Prince of Alderaan.” She lifted her hands to his cheeks to cup his face; her fingers tenderly brushed across the scar on the one side. Ben’s eyes widened and she felt a shudder go through his body at her touch.

“Our correspondence this week - your letters…” Her husband took her hands in his and pressed them to his chest, right over his heart. Rey wondered that it raced beneath her palms."Is it too forward of me to say that I have come to…” he swallowed, “to care for you?”

A strange lightness came over her and Rey shook her head. “No. I… I’ve come to feel the same. Ben…” His hands squeezed hers in encouragement and she continued. “You do make me feel free and safe. For the first time in my life. I did not expect that, but I’m glad for it. Very glad. And I… I want to be your wife. In every way.”

“Rey.” It was the first time he’d spoken her name aloud. She’d given him permission in her letters and his use of it in those notes had given them a special intimacy but hearing it was quite another thing. Better. His voice was low and thrummed through her body, full of an energy that lay just below the surface. “I…”

“Ben,” Rey interrupted, her heart pounding wildly behind her ribs, “will you kiss me again?”

The candle flame seemed to flare where it was reflected in his eyes and his hand cupped the back of her neck in a lighter-than-air grip. Even so Rey could tell his fingers were trembling. When he kissed her, it was chaste, a repeat of their kiss at the ceremony, but Rey wanted more and fisted her hands in his tunic as she made an effort, clumsy as it was. No matter, Ben understood, and Rey was soon weak-kneed and practically hanging on to him, his kiss overwhelming her in the best of ways. In an instant his arms were around her, supporting her, holding her to him.

All Rey’s uncertainty about that night - indeed about her marriage - fell away and she knew without a doubt that Ben would keep his vows to her.

Together they would defeat her grandfather.

Together they would rebuild the Empire.

**Author's Note:**

> for more reylo fun:
> 
> [Zoa Writes tumblr](https://zoawrites.tumblr.com/)
> 
> [main tumblr](https://star-toured.tumblr.com/)
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/StarToured)


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